Sarah has a lot of qualities I love -- that's not exactly a secret. But one of the greatest things about having kids has been seeing her best qualities appear in them. Specifically:
Compassion - I see this in the girls, even Susannah who's not yet two. If someone is crying or even just a little bit upset, the girls are in there right away, hugging, saying, "It's okay, my sweetie," (if it's Veronica) or, "Po' Teddy!" (if it's Susannah). And Veronica has a long term concern for people that's rare in kids. She's had grandparents with bad backs, a dad with a bum foot, and other friends with health issues, and she'll ask them about it every time she sees them. That's Sarah: thinking and worrying about others, all the time.
Enthusiasm - This is the clearest one -- the one people see in our kids and immediately say, "I know where they get that from." If you know Teddy at all, one of the principal words you'd use to describe him is enthusiastic. He literally bounces with excitement. And he's a big cheerleader for his friends and family. I think his friends' achievements excite him more than his own. And Susannah's an enthusiastic little nugget too. It's go great to see the enthusiasm in her because it's immediate and unbridled. Even simple things thrill her. I hear, "Wook, Daddy! It's GUNTHER!" at least three times a day. We get a lot of Yay!s out of her, just like we do from Sarah. I've written before about her comic-book laugh ("Hee hee! Ha ha! Ho Ho!") Well she also says Yay! more then any adult I've ever met.
Intelligence - These are smart, perceptive kids, and there's no doubt where those qualities come from. Teddy is an awesome reader, and he's becoming a keen student too (instances of Thunderdome-style recess battles notwithstanding). Last week he was telling me all about 'attributes'. He brings new ideas home from school nearly every day. With Veronica, I see her smarts most in the questions she asks. Literally yesterday (as I write this, though not when it'll be posted) she overheard us talking about someone we knew who'd had a lung transplant, and she wouldn't just take the situation as fact. She wanted to know how did they get the lungs out?
How did they open up his body? Did it hurt? How did they keep him asleep? How did they wake him up? Where did the other lungs come from? As for Susannah, I feel pretty confident that she'll be the smartest of the bunch. She is super, super chatty, and with her it's never just been parroting words back to us. I always feel like she understands. I'm amazed by her ability to understand pretty much everything we ever ask her to do (she doesn't necessarily comply, but comprehension is never the problem). And she spends tons of time with books. I'd bet big money she'll be a rockstar reader before we know. It'll be a house full of nerd-smart, bookworm kids, all taking after their mother.
Sarah, these entries are always about the ways I'm grateful for you. And this year, I'm grateful that your compassionate, enthusiastic, intelligent genes are so much stronger than my lazy, bearded, flatulent ones.
Compassion - I see this in the girls, even Susannah who's not yet two. If someone is crying or even just a little bit upset, the girls are in there right away, hugging, saying, "It's okay, my sweetie," (if it's Veronica) or, "Po' Teddy!" (if it's Susannah). And Veronica has a long term concern for people that's rare in kids. She's had grandparents with bad backs, a dad with a bum foot, and other friends with health issues, and she'll ask them about it every time she sees them. That's Sarah: thinking and worrying about others, all the time.Enthusiasm - This is the clearest one -- the one people see in our kids and immediately say, "I know where they get that from." If you know Teddy at all, one of the principal words you'd use to describe him is enthusiastic. He literally bounces with excitement. And he's a big cheerleader for his friends and family. I think his friends' achievements excite him more than his own. And Susannah's an enthusiastic little nugget too. It's go great to see the enthusiasm in her because it's immediate and unbridled. Even simple things thrill her. I hear, "Wook, Daddy! It's GUNTHER!" at least three times a day. We get a lot of Yay!s out of her, just like we do from Sarah. I've written before about her comic-book laugh ("Hee hee! Ha ha! Ho Ho!") Well she also says Yay! more then any adult I've ever met.
Intelligence - These are smart, perceptive kids, and there's no doubt where those qualities come from. Teddy is an awesome reader, and he's becoming a keen student too (instances of Thunderdome-style recess battles notwithstanding). Last week he was telling me all about 'attributes'. He brings new ideas home from school nearly every day. With Veronica, I see her smarts most in the questions she asks. Literally yesterday (as I write this, though not when it'll be posted) she overheard us talking about someone we knew who'd had a lung transplant, and she wouldn't just take the situation as fact. She wanted to know how did they get the lungs out?
How did they open up his body? Did it hurt? How did they keep him asleep? How did they wake him up? Where did the other lungs come from? As for Susannah, I feel pretty confident that she'll be the smartest of the bunch. She is super, super chatty, and with her it's never just been parroting words back to us. I always feel like she understands. I'm amazed by her ability to understand pretty much everything we ever ask her to do (she doesn't necessarily comply, but comprehension is never the problem). And she spends tons of time with books. I'd bet big money she'll be a rockstar reader before we know. It'll be a house full of nerd-smart, bookworm kids, all taking after their mother.Sarah, these entries are always about the ways I'm grateful for you. And this year, I'm grateful that your compassionate, enthusiastic, intelligent genes are so much stronger than my lazy, bearded, flatulent ones.
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